Flos

Established in 1962 in Merano, FLOS is an international company offering a range of products and systems in the residential and architectural lighting sector. Famous for solutions that are both creative and innovative, the company has a broad catalogue of iconic lighting products by celebrated designers including Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni, Philippe Starck, Antonio Citterio, Marcel Wanders, Konstantin Grcic, Jasper Morrison, Patricia Urquiola, Ron Gilad, Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec and many more.

FLOS has an ongoing commitment to research and innovation in lighting technology, combined with an extraordinary ability to identify new creative talents. With the recent launch of the Soft Architecture collection, a ground-breaking project recognised by leading international awards, the company has further demonstrated how a historic brand can look to the future without loosing sight of its tradition.

The Company strengths
A catalogue filled with iconic lighting that changed the concept of illumination itself.
Strong symbolic appeal.
Collaboration with the most inventive international designers.
Uncanny ability to spot emerging talent.
Courage to be daring and provocative, yet uphold the fundamental principles of design.
Constant dedication to research into innovative materials and technology.
A vast selection of high quality, innovative lighting designed to fit and enhance any environment, ranging from basic all the way to luxurious.
Products and projects carefully designed and developed, to provide perfectly balanced lighting for any space.
Strong commitment to customer service; time-proven dedication to study and develop lighting systems to fit the style of any environment, indoor, outdoor, public or private as it may be.
The ability to evolve without losing its DNA.
Well structured growth, to support ever increasing sales, keep abreast of emerging socio-cultural trends in keeping with the original principles of the company.
A time-honoured, proven reference. Great design and cutting edge lighting technology that is immediately recognizable.

The origins of the Company
FLOS was founded in 1962 in Merano. Since the beginning it enlisted the aid of excellent collaborators, such as Achille Castiglioni, Pier Giacomo Castiglioni and Tobia Scarpa. One of their first creations was the Cocoon, made from a very pliable material made in the USA and used for packaging by the American Army. In 1964 Sergio Gandini joined the company, and the headquarters were moved to a new site near Brescia. The first FLOS retail store, designed by the Castiglioni brothers, opened in Milan in 1968.

Growth and evolution of the Company
In 1971 FLOS opened its first subsidiary in Germany. In 1974 it purchased Arteluce, a historical brand founded in 1939 by Gino Sarfatti, and opened a new factory in Bovezzo, just outside the city of Brescia.
The collaboration with Achille Castiglioni continued through the ‘80s, and in 1992 he introduced the “family of products” concept to the market with the Brera series. At the same time, FLOS continued to scout for emerging talents at an international level. In 1988 the Company started collaborating with Philippe Starck. Other talented designers followed thereafter: Jasper Morrison, Konstantin Grcic, Marc Newson, Antonio Citterio, Marcel Wanders, Sebastian Wrong, Laurene Leon Boym, Paolo Rizzatto, Piero Lissoni, Rodolfo Dordoni, Tim Derhaag, Johanna Grawunder, Joris Laarman, Patricia Urquiola, Paul Cocksedge, Edward Barber & Jay Osgerby, Ron Gilad, until the recent collaborations with Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec and Thierry Dreyfus.
During the ‘90s the Company expanded its contract-related presence, launching a division focused on turn-key solutions, called Light Contract. The FLOS contract division assists architects not only as a manufacturer, but also as a specialty lighting systems designer for a wide-range of challenging environments, such as museums, stores, and theatres.
Piero Gandini, Sergio’s son, became FLOS C.E.O. in 1996, and also Chairman in 1999.
In 2007 Flos opened its first Professional Space in Milan, Corso Monforte 15. A 574 square meter office and showroom space, on two levels, designed by Jasper Morrison, characterized by extremely clean lines. The ground floor, that opens onto an adjacent cloister through large vertical-rising windows, hosts the reception, a principal showroom, a technical architectural room and a meeting room. Gray Diamond stone pavers run along both sides of the suggestive cloister to perfectly highlight its original arcade. The basement level houses a relax room and a highly evocative area where the outdoor collections are displayed.
The tradition of collaborating with highly-talented professionals also extended to FLOS promotional activities. FLOS entrusted its image and advertising campaigns to a famous international photographer, Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

The icons
Through the years, the FLOS decorative catalogues have been showcasing items that now rightfully belong to the history of design: forms, lighting techniques, original design concepts invented by FLOS, readily acclaimed and adopted by consumers across multi-cultural areas and eras. Among these: Parentesi by Achille Castiglioni and Pio Manzù; Arco and Taraxacum by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni; Miss Sissi, Archimoon, the Romeo series and the Ktribe series by Philippe Starck; the Glo-Ball series by Jasper Morrison; Skygarden and Zeppelin suspension lights by Marcel Wanders; the 2097 chandelier by Gino Sarfatti; Ray by Rodolfo Dordoni; Kelvin LED by Antonio Citterio with Toan Nguyen; Nebula by Joris Laarman, Smithfield by Jasper Morrison.

The architectural sector
In 1998 FLOS established its presence in the architectural sector by acquiring a share of Antares, a Spanish company specialized in lighting devices. The wedlock between a Spanish manufacturer of mass-retail products and an Italian producer of high-class interior design lamps led to the creation of FLOS Architectural Lighting, which combines cutting-edge engineering with suggestive lighting design. In 2005 FLOS acquired the majority share (75%) of Antares. The first FLOS Architectural catalogue made its debut in 2006 at Light & Building Expo in Frankfurt.

Soft-Architecture
In 2010 FLOS introduced one of its most ambitious and avant-garde products, the Soft-Architecture Collection. A natural fusion of light and architecture, a completely new vision of space and light to give settings a new identity. Created using an innovative composite material (Under-Cover technology) which unites light weight and high strength, it delivers performance, durability and perfect integration with normal plasterboard false ceilings. This collection also complies with the latest international safety and eco-compatibility regulations, as it is made with fireproof material and has obtained the ‘Cradle to Cradle’ certification: a design protocol that ensures that companies regard sustainability as a value, not a sacrifice, and offer products which can be recycled eternally.
Soft Architecture is diversified and aligned with needs, demonstrating how it can project a specific character and identity in different locations, whether they are intimate or domestic settings, or public spaces like restaurants, spas, stores, meeting points, art galleries, offices, etc. The list of designers that have committed to this new concept confirm the versatility that is a characteristic feature of Soft Architecture: Ron Gilad, Philippe Starck, Sebastian Wrong, Marcel Wanders, Antonio Citterio, and more lately, Thierry Dreyfus.
In 2011 Wallpiercing by Ron Gilad won the most ambitious international awards and was requested to form part of the permanent MoMA Collection from 2012.

FLOS today
Thank to a know-how acquired over fifty years of experience, FLOS is today an international organization that offers a complete range of residential, commercial and even custom-made lighting products that can be seamlessly integrated in any office, hotel, or store. With a constant commitment to research and technological innovation, but always aiming to reach a poetic quality of light, the company has demonstrated how a historic brand can look to the future without loosing sight of its tradition.